The gut-brain axis connects microbiome health to mental health and behaviour in companion animals. New understanding is opening therapeutic avenues for anxiety and stress.
Microbiome-mental health connections in companion animals offer new therapeutic possibilities for welfare problems including anxiety, noise phobia, and separation distress. The understanding that behavioural problems can have gut components opens dietary and probiotic interventions as adjuncts to behavioural therapy. This does not replace conventional approaches but adds a valuable dimension that is often low-risk and owner-manageable. The growing evidence base suggests that gut health is part of companion animal mental health, not separate from it.